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WikiLeaks docs allege CIA can hack smartphones, expose Frankfurt listening post

Brian Ross, James Gordon Meek, Randy Kreider and Liz Kreutz - ABC News — Sun, 05 Dec 2021 10:22:43 +0000

The CIA would not verify the documents’ authenticity.

WikiLeaks released on Tuesday what the whistleblower group claimed were thousands of secret CIA files showing how U.S. spies hack smartphones, as well as exposing a major secret listening post in Germany.

The Office of the Director of National Intelligence declined to comment, and in a statement the CIA would not say whether the files are authentic.

“We do not comment on the authenticity or content of purported intelligence documents,” said CIA spokesperson Jonathan Liu.

However, several current and former intelligence officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, told ABC News the documents appear to be authentic and likely have origins at the National Security Agency, where most national security hacking of overseas targets occurs.

“Somebody really screwed up to let this get out,” a former official familiar with the activities outlined in the WikiLeaks-released files told ABC News.

WikiLeaks said a former government contractor leaked the tranche of files.

“Recently, the CIA lost control of the majority of its hacking arsenal, including malware, viruses, trojans, weaponized ‘zero day’ exploits, malware remote control systems and associated documentation. This extraordinary collection, which amounts to more than several hundred million lines of code, gives its possessor the entire hacking capacity of the CIA. The archive appears to have been circulated among former U.S. government hackers and contractors in an unauthorized manner, one of whom has provided WikiLeaks with portions of the archive,” WikiLeaks said in a statement accompanying more than 8,000 pages of documents.

The WikiLeaks files also revealed that the U.S. Consulate in Frankfurt is a major hacker outpost for the most important and sensitive operations, and a former official confirmed that it is the major nerve center for covert joint CIA and National Security Agency voice collection around the globe. The official said it was the likely origin of the hacking of German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s personal phone — which was revealed in a leak by NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden in 2013.

In fact, many of the hacker tools and files referred to in the documents appear to be the NSA’s, in the possession of the CIA rather than the CIA’s capabilities, an official said.

“There are only specific people at [the CIA’s Center for Cyber Intelligence] who are allowed to see tailored access operations products by NSA hackers,” the official told ABC News.

The U.K.’s signals intelligence spy agency GCHQ, for example, is known to conduct proxy cyberactivities in places where the U.S. faces legal restrictions the British government does not have to contend with, a former official involved in hacking said. That intelligence is often shared with or gathered at the behest of American spy services.

The current and former officials could not corroborate WikiLeaks’ claim that a former contractor was behind the massive security breach but said it was very possible, if not highly likely.

“I’m not denying there are people leaking information,” Tyler Wood, a former senior Defense Intelligence Agency cyberprograms official, told ABC News today.

The leaked files show a large effort undertaken by CIA’s Center for Cyber Intelligence to find ways to turn consumer electronic devices — from smart TVs to Google Android and Apple IOS devices, including smartphones and tablets — into remotely activated spy devices. The files detail efforts made to access messages before they are encrypted by security apps and to turn on phones and activate tablet cameras and microphones without owners’ awareness. An entire office at CCI is devoted to exploiting mobile smart devices, the documents suggest.

While Snowden, in hiding in Russia and still wanted by U.S. authorities for his breach, tweeted today that the CIA files reveal a “security hole the CIA left open to break into any iPhone in the world,” an official familiar with such intelligence activities said usually a human spy is necessary — a “cyber middleman” — who can first gain physical access to a device. That is an often dangerous task and is rarely accomplished, the official told ABC News.

The programs revealed today have a series of cover names, such as BrutalKangaroo, RickyBobby, AfterMidnight and WeepingAngel — the last being the name of a set of characters in the BBC sci-fi drama “Dr. Who.”

Countless intelligence programs with similar cover names — approved by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence in a lengthy process — had to be renamed after Snowden blew the lid on those activities.

“And everything will have to be renamed after this,” an official familiar with many of the named programs told ABC News.

Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman John McCain, R-Ariz., said Americans should pay attention to such breaches that reveal vulnerabilities to privacy and national security.

“This is of the utmost seriousness. If they can hack into the CIA, they can hack into anybody,” he said today.

Many cybersecurity experts on social media after the leaks focused attention on the apparent capability of U.S. intelligence to hack smart devices such as Samsung smart TVs, which the leaked files said can be in “fake off mode” when in reality the microphone is turned into a room-listening device without anyone nearby knowing it because the TV appears to be off.

“Pretty much anything can be made into an eavesdropping device,” said a former official.

Samsung, in its user manuals’ privacy statement, warns users that their speech can be transmitted through the internet to third parties.

In the last 10 years, WikiLeaks has published an incredible amount of secret U.S. information — about military operations in Iraq, Guantanamo Bay and, more recently, Democratic National Committee emails hacked by Russian intelligence.

Devin Nunes, R-Calif., the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, said he is “extremely concerned” by the WikiLeaks publications on Tuesday, telling reporters his panel has reached out to the intelligence community for more information.

“We’ve had initial inquiries into the [intelligence community]. Look, this is early on in the investigation, but these appear to be very, very serious. But at this time, that’s really all the information that I have on it,” he said. “I’ve long said this — that emails and many of our electronic devices are not safe, and they’re primarily not safe from our adversaries like the Russians and the Chinese and others who are actively trying to get into government institutions and private businesses.”

Asked about supposed security vulnerabilities detailed in the documents that are relevant to its devices, Apple said, “While our initial analysis indicates that many of the issues leaked today were already patched in the latest iOS, we will continue work to rapidly address any identified vulnerabilities. We always urge customers to download the latest iOS to make sure they have the most recent security updates.”

“As we’ve reviewed the documents, we’re confident that security updates and protections in both Chrome and Android already shield users from many of these alleged vulnerabilities,” Heather Adkins, Director of Information Security and Privacy at Google, said in a statement to ABC News after original publication of this story. “Our analysis is ongoing and we will implement any further necessary protections. We’ve always made security a top priority and we continue to invest in our defenses.”

Samsung, when asked for comment, said, “Protecting consumers’ privacy and the security of our devices is a top priority at Samsung. We are aware of the report in question and are urgently looking into the matter.”

Last October, Trump as a presidential candidate said, “WikiLeaks, I love WikiLeaks. And I said, write a couple of them down. Let’s see.”

In the regular White House press briefing on Tuesday, press secretary Sean Spicer declined to comment on the matter.

ABC News’ Matthew Mosk, Alexander Hosenball, Paul Blake, Cho Park, Benjamin Siegel and Elizabeth McLaughlin contributed to this report.

This story was originally published on March 7, 2017 and has been updated as new information has become available.

Source: https://abcnews.go.com/International/wikileaks-docs-allege-cia-hack-smartphones-exposes-frankfurt/story?id=45977302

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The post WikiLeaks docs allege CIA can hack smartphones, expose Frankfurt listening post first appeared on Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association.

Trump BANNED! John McCain told President NOT to attend his funeral in final SNUB

James Bickerton — Thu, 30 Aug 2018 17:32:37 +0000

SENATOR John McCain left instructions before his death that Trump must not be allowed to attend his funeral, during which Barack Obama will give a eulogy, in a final dramatic snub to the President.

Mr McCain was very clear to friends and family that Trump is banned (Image: GETTY )

Before he passed Mr McCain was very clear to friends and family that Trump is banned.

He also asked former Presidents Mr Obama and George W. Bush to give eulogies.

Both men are prominent Trump critics, and the invitations are being seen by many as a barely disguised attack on the sitting President.

According to CNN Mr Obama was stunned by the invitation, and both men accepted.

In 2016 Mr Obama, who Trump defined himself against politically, claimed the then presidential contender was “unfit to serve as president” and “woefully unprepared to do this job”.

Similarly Mr Bush has said that Trump “doesn’t know what it means to be President” and admitted he didn’t vote for his fellow Republican in the 2016 presidential election.

Mr Obama famously defeated Mr McCain in the 2008 presidential election.

He was also defeated by Mr Bush, for the Republican Party presidential nomination in 2010.

Before he died Mr McCain penned a final “letter to America” which was fiercely critical of Trump.

In a clear attack on Trump’s proposed border wall it claimed American greatness is reduced: “when we hide behind walls, rather than tear them down.”

He added: “Do not despair of our present difficulties but believe always in the promise and greatness of America, because nothing is inevitable here.

“Americans never quit. We never hide from history. We make history.”

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John McCain wanted Obama and Bush to speak at his funeral, but Trump’s not invited

Ellen Cranley — Mon, 27 Aug 2018 16:59:23 +0000

Sen. John McCain.Carolyn Kaster/AP

President Donald Trump is not invited to Sen. John McCain’s funeral.
McCain reportedly said before he died he did not want Trump at the service, which much of Washington is expected to attend.
The two most recent presidents and McCain’s former election opponents, George W. Bush and Barack Obama, have been asked to speak at the service at Washington National Cathedral.
McCain’s death prompted an outpouring of praise from Washington, and his funeral proceedings include the rare honor of lying in state at the US Capitol.

Americans from Arizona to Washington, DC, will have the chance to pay their respects to Sen. John McCain at multiple memorials honoring the six-term senator and war hero who died from brain cancer on Saturday at the age of 81.

But President Donald Trump will most likely not be among the attendees.

The New York Times reported in May that Trump would not be invited to McCain’s funeral. Two White House officials confirmed to The Associated Press that the president was asked not to attend.

The two feuded for years. The son and grandson of Navy admirals, McCain served in the US Navy for 22 years, 5 1/2 of which he spent as a prisoner of war in Vietnam. During the 2016 presidential campaign, Trump mocked McCain’s military service.

“He’s not a war hero,” Trump said in July 2015. “He’s a war hero because he was captured. I like people that weren’t captured.”

McCain issued some blistering statements condemning Trump’s behavior, including in October 2016 after the 2005 tape of Trump making lewd comments about women emerged, as well as in July after Trump met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in a summit that McCain called “disgraceful.”

One of President Donald Trump’s biggest issues with McCain came when he broke with his party to vote down a Republican measure to repeal parts of the Affordable Care Act. Associated Press/YouTube

As president, Trump continued to throw subtle jabs at McCain after the Arizona senator voiced his opposition on matters of foreign policy, healthcare, and immigration.

McCain’s death has prompted an outpouring of praise for his life and career from Washington heavyweights. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer even called for renaming the Russell Senate Office Building in McCain’s honor.

Trump tweeted: “My deepest sympathies and respect go out to the family of Senator John McCain. Our hearts and prayers are with you!”

Trump rejected a statement from his aides praising McCain, saying he wanted to post his own statement on Twitter instead, The Washington Post reported on Sunday. The president also didn’t initially issue a proclamation to keep US flags at half-staff& and the White House’s returned to full staff on Monday morning.

The flags were again lowered to half-mast Monday afternoon as Trump issued a proclamation that they would stay that way until McCain’s burial on Sunday.

Trump also announced he asked chief of staff John Kelly, Secretary of Defense James Mattis, and national security adviser John Bolton to attend the funeral ceremony on behalf of the administration.

McCain’s funeral arrangements

After three decades in Congress, McCain will lie in state, in the US Capitol’s rotunda, his colleagues announced, making him the 31st person and 13th senator to receive the rare honor.

The public will have opportunities to pay their respects in Phoenix and DC. There will be two separate services — the one in Phoenix will have some public seating, but the one in DC will be by invitation only.

McCain’s memorials include:

Wednesday, August 29
- Lying in state at the Arizona State Capitol
- Ceremony starts at 10 a.m. local time
- Open to the public starting at 2 p.m.
- Livestream will be available
Thursday, August 30
- Service at the North Phoenix Baptist Church
- Starts at 10 a.m. local time
- Limited public seating by request
- Livestream available
Friday, August 31
- Lying in state at the US Capitol
- Ceremony starts at 11 a.m. ET
- Open to the public 2-8 p.m.
- Livestream available
Saturday, September 1
- Service at Washington National Cathedral
- Private event by invitation only
- Starts at 10 a.m. ET
- Livestream available

Though Trump wasn’t invited to McCain’s funeral services, Vice President Mike Pence will attend, along with scores of politicians, members of the military, and other Washington heavyweights. Trump said in his statement Monday that he asked Pence to speak at the ceremony on Friday.

McCain will be buried at his alma mater, the US Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, next to his best friend, Adm. Chuck Larson.

George W. Bush and Obama were asked to speak

Former Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama, the two men to whom McCain lost his presidential bids, will deliver eulogies at the National Cathedral service on Saturday, CBS News confirmed.

Sen. Jeff Flake of Arizona said on CBS’s “Face the Nation” on Sunday that McCain’s choice to include his former running opponents was a significant reach across the political divide that represents McCain’s style.

“These were bitter contests, both of them,” Flake said. “To ask them to speak at your funeral and for them to be honored at the opportunity, that tells you all you need to know.”

Remembering the life and legacy of John McCain:

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Trump says Russia should be reinstated in group of leading industrialized nations

Allie Malloy and Nicole Gaouette, CNN — Fri, 08 Jun 2018 11:01:50 +0000

Quebec City (CNN)President Donald Trump said Friday that Russia should be reinstated to a leading group of industrialized nations ahead of his visit to the G7 summit this weekend.

Trump’s statement is an extraordinary break from key US allies, and particularly striking given Russia’s meddling in the 2016 election. A special counsel investigation into whether Trump campaign officials colluded with Russia is underway, though Trump has repeatedly denied the allegations.

“Russia should be in this meeting,” Trump told reporters upon leaving the White House for the summit, which is being held in Charlevoix, Canada. “They should let Russia come back in, because we should have Russia at the negotiating table.”

Russia was suspended from the group — then known as the G8 — in 2014 after the majority of member countries allied against Russia’s annexation of Crimea, which Russia continues to hold.

Asked in an interview earlier this week about what would need to happen for Russia to return Crimea to Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin told Austria’s ORF broadcasting corporation that “there are no such conditions and there can never be.”

Friction with key allies

Trump’s comments underscore the growing divide between the US, under his administration, and Washington’s closest allies.

The President’s willingness to look the other way on Russia’s annexation of Crimea — the first violation of a European country’s borders since World War II — will particularly deepen the chill with allies such as the UK, France and Germany, which are already furious about US trade tariffs, and Trump’s rejection of the Iran nuclear deal and the Paris climate agreement.

“We always been clear we should engage with Russia where it is in our interests, but we need to remember why G8 became the G7: it was because Russia illegally annexed Crimea,” a European diplomat told CNN. “Since then, we have seen an increase in Russian misbehavior and attempts to undermine democracy in Europe. It is not appropriate for Russia to rejoin until we see it behaving responsibly. Putin should get nothing for free.”

At home, Trump’s continuing failure to condemn Russia for its aggressive behavior and his ongoing push to restore more normal relations is bound to raise questions, once again, about his affinity for Moscow and Putin.

Sen. John McCain blasted Trump for his comments, saying “The President has inexplicably shown our adversaries the deference and esteem that should be reserved for our closest allies.”

The Arizona Republican, who chairs the Senate Armed Services Committee, said in a statement that Putin “chose to make Russia unworthy of membership in the G-8 by invading Ukraine and annexing Crimea. Nothing he has done since then has changed that most obvious fact. Every day, Russian-led separatist forces are killing Ukrainians in the Donbass. Every day, Putin’s forces are helping the Assad regime slaughter the Syrian people.

And every day, through assassinations, cyber-attacks, and malign influence, Russia is assaulting democratic institutions all over the world.”

The statement added, “Those nations that share our values and have sacrificed alongside us for decades are being treated with contempt. This is the antithesis of so-called ‘principled realism’ and a sure path to diminishing America’s leadership in the world.”

Sen. Ben Sasse, R-Nebraska, also a member of the Armed Services Committee, said in a statement, “Putin is not our friend and he is not the President’s buddy. He is a thug using Soviet-style aggression to wage a shadow war against America, and our leaders should act like it.”

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said Trump was turning US foreign policy “into an international joke, doing lasting damage to our country.”

Former Vice President Joe Biden also criticized Trump’s remarks, writing on Twitter, “Putin’s Russia invaded its neighbors, violated our sovereignty by undermining elections, and attacks dissidents abroad. Yet our President wants to reward him with a seat at the table while alienating our closest democratic allies. It makes no sense.”

The comment not only surprised American allies and politicians, but Trump’s own National Security Council staff.

A National Security Council official told reporters in Quebec Trump’s comments were not planned.

When asked about whether there was a potential for a summit between Russian President Putin and President Trump, the official said there have been no discussions in terms of when, where or what that summit might look like. The official added that there was some chatter, but it’s not something the NSC is working on internally.

Acrimonious start to G7

Trump’s comments also come at a time when Trump is on the outs with other members of the G7. On Thursday, Trump engaged in a bitter back-and-forth with French President Emmanuel Macron and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau over Twitter, both of whom he’ll meet face-to-face on Friday.

Trump is expecting a knock-down, drag-out fight with top US allies over trade during his time at the conference, held in remote Quebec. It’s a battle he believes he can win, but which he’s unenthusiastic about waging in person, people familiar with his thinking say.

On Thursday, Macron said the leaders would not rule out a 6+1 communique as opposed to the traditional document signed by all leaders at the end of the summit with shared goals and principles.

One G7 leader, however, quickly backed Trump’s statement: Italy’s newly sworn in Prime Minister, Giuseppe Conte, who said it would be in “everyone’s interest” for Russia to be reinstated.

Although Conte, a former law professor, has not voiced particularly strong opinions on Russia in the past, his two deputies — the leader of the Five Star movement and the far-right League Party, who have considered influence over him — have frequently expressed pro-Russia views.

CNN’s Elise Labott, Matt Wells, Gianluca Mezzofiore and Hilary McGann contributed to this report.

Source: https://www.cnn.com/2018/06/08/politics/russia-g7/index.html

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Germany and the US need a new beginning in their security relationship

Ariel Cohen, Opinion Contributor — Sun, 25 Feb 2018 04:34:42 +0000

In the snow-covered, fairy-tale city of Munich, global security leaders gathered for their yearly conclave, the Munich Security Conference, the Davos of foreign policy and power.

However, instead of Bavarian glory, tension was in the air. This participant repeatedly saw speakers talking past each other, creating an impression that this was not a dialogue about the fate of the world, but an absurdist theater spectacle by Eugene Ionesco.

Concerns abounded that the global security system has become unglued, that poor leadership East and West prevents cohesion, that the “strong street” overrules weak elites in Europe and America, and “the center cannot hold,” while the aggressive authoritarians: Russia, China, and Iran, eventually may not be contained.

NATO has been a linchpin of Western security for 70 years, and is crucial to preventing global chaos. Initially created, according to its first Secretary General Lord Ismay, “to keep the Soviet Union out, the Americans in, and the Germans down,” today, NATO needs the Germans in more than ever.

Because of the rise of China, the threat of North Korean nukes, and U.S. domestic fatigue in the aftermath of two long wars, not to mention the trillions of dollars spent, growing budget deficits, and America’s changing demographics, rich and technologically advanced Germany needs to step up to the plate.

With NATO and other European security institutions including the EU and the consensus-driven Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe/U.S. Helsinki Commission, fraying or fatigued, Berlin’s leadership and resources are now more essential than ever to both trans-Atlantic and European security.

Тhe Loisach Group, which focuses on the U.S.-German strategic relationship, is a high-level gathering of practitioners and experts from Germany and the U.S., ably coordinated by Dr. Andrew Michta, Dean of the College of International and Security Studies at the George C. Marshall European Center in Garmisch, Germany.

At the Munich Security Conference, the Loisach Group brought together such heavyweights as Dan Hamilton of SAIS; Lieutenant General Ben Hodges (U.S. Army, ret.), former Commander of the U.S. Army Europe; former President of Estonia; Joseph Joffe, Publisher of Die Zeit; Alexander Vershbow, former Deputy Secretary General of NATO and U.S. Ambassador to the Russian Federation and South Korea as well as the former Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs; Celeste Wallander, Special Assistant to President Obama and Senior Director for Russia and Central Asia on the National Security Council after serving as the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Russia, Ukraine, and Eurasia; Robert Zoellick, the former President of the World Bank, Deputy Secretary of State, and U.S. Trade Representative, along with other veteran policy makers and experts.

The collective wisdom and experience crackled in the room. Yet, the bottom line after discussions was a general agreement that much more needs to be done in Berlin and Washington, and this is no time to rest.

Some Loisach members are concerned that the Christian Democrat-Social Democrat coalition, possibly Angela Merkel’s last, will be even more unwieldy than its predecessor. At the Munich conference, Sigmar Gabriel, the exiting German foreign minister, called for a “European moment,” a strong EU, and said that “we no longer recognize our America” under the Trump presidency.

Yet under his and the Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyden’s tenure, Berlin did not meet the NATO 2014 Wales summit goals of 2 percent of military spending, which both Republicans and Democrats in Munich supported.

Some believe that it is more important that Germany invest in transportation infrastructure, including bridges and railroads, to move equipment east in case of Russian aggression against NATO members, than just build up its military. Yet, German rearmament already has started, sotto voce, albeit from a very low baseline. The Bundeswehr has fewer than 300 battle-worthy Leopard-2 modern tanks and three dozen modern jet fighters. Russia, however, has thousands of tanks and aircraft.

NATO forces also urgently need secure communications in the FM band as well as upgraded, computerized artillery fire after the impressive Russian cannon and rocketry performance in Ukraine, boosted missile defenses, and massively upgraded cyber and information warfare capabilities.

Loisach Group members argue that to strengthen bilateral ties between the U.S. and Germany, expanded contacts between congressional representatives and staffs and members of the Bundestag and their staffs are required. Likewise, relationships between the media, expert communities, and civil society in both countries need to be fostered and broadened.

To keep our qualitative edge, the U.S. and Europe should also pursue joint projects in military and security applications of artificial intelligence, new propulsion systems, robotics, drones, big data, and biometrics.

We need to find someone of the stature of Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) to take over his leadership role and champion the trans-Atlantic alliance. It will take a special effort to convert the populist Trumpian Republicans and the far left of the Democratic Party to the cause of Trans-Atlantic cooperation. America First should not mean America alone. If America stands separately, we will all pay the price, and so will our friends and allies.

While many in Europe do not see China and North Korea as a threat, refuse to reconsider the Iran nuclear deal, and, like Mr. Gabriel, would like to weaken Russian sanctions, only in cooperation with the U.S. can Europe develop a viable and robust strategy for Asia, the Middle East, and Russia, and have a realistic global anti-terrorism role. We are all in this together, and one hopes that the Loisach Group can become the lodestar of U.S.-German strategic cooperation.

Ariel Cohen, PhD, is senior research fellow at the Atlantic Council and a member of the Loisach Group. The views expressed here are his own.

Source: http://thehill.com/opinion/international/375450-germany-and-the-us-need-a-new-beginning-in-their-security-relationship

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House expands Russia probe to FBI, Justice use of unconfirmed dossier to snare Trump

Rowan Scarborough - The Washington Times — Mon, 01 Jan 2018 16:38:40 +0000

Rep. Devin Nunes (right), chairman of the House Permanent Select committee on intelligence, has widened the net in the panel’s investigation into the use of the unconfirmed Russia dossier against Donald Trump. (Associated Press/File)

The House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence has expanded its 2016 election investigation from a starting point of Russian interference to an end-game that focuses on federal law enforcement and how it conducted a drive to snare President Trump and his people.

Committee Chairman Devin Nunes, California Republican, is accusing the Justice Department and the FBI of misleading him in “a pattern of behavior that can no longer be tolerated.” He charges that Justice claimed it possesses no documents related to the infamous Trump dossier, then, under pressure, produced “numerous” such papers.

Republicans in the first half of 2018 are likely to wind down the starting-point inquiry into Russian hacking of Democrats and whether Trump aides helped.

Rep. Adam Schiff of California, the committee’s top Democrat, already is protesting the likely move. He is pushing an extended list of witnesses he wants summoned by Republicans, who suspect Mr. Schiff would like to see the probe stay active into November’s midterm elections and beyond.

Democrats, including Mr. Schiff, have conceded in recent weeks that their hope of finding an extensive Russia–Trumpconspiracy to jointly attack former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has fallen short at this point.

What could outlive the initial Russia probe are missions undertaken by Mr. Nunes. He has put in place what amounts to a separate investigation of the FBI and the Justice Department hierarchy.

There are three main components:

• Fusion GPS. The Democrat-friendly opposition research firm and Mr. Nunes have squared off in U.S. District Court over access to Fusion’s financial transactions. Fusion funded the infamous Trump–Russia dossier with money from Mrs. Clinton’s campaign and the Democratic National Committee.

• The FBI and the dossier. Republicans want to know how the document’s unconfirmed felony accusations fueled the bureau’s counterintelligence investigation since July 2016.

• Investigative bias. The committee is demanding appearances from Justice officials who seemed out to get Mr. Trumpand/or had ties to the dossier’s distribution.

On Fusion, Mr. Nunes has used his subpoena power to seek records of Fusion’s financial transactions between law firms, journalists and media companies.

Fusion, founded by former Wall Street Journal reporters, notably Glenn Simpson, argues its records are protected by First Amendment rights.

The Washington Examiner reported that a key subpoenaed witness is David Kramer, an associate of Senate Armed Services Chairman John McCain, Arizona Republican. Mr. Kramer is one of the few people known to have possessed a hard copy of the dossier.

At the behest of Mr. McCain, Mr. Kramer represented the senator at a Nov. 28, 2016, meeting with Christopher Steele in Surrey, England. A British ex-spy, Mr. Steele compiled the 35 pages of memos making up the dossier based on his paid Kremlin sources, some close to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Mr. Kramer then obtained a copy of the dossier from Fusion GPS. Mr. McCain hand-delivered a copy to then-FBIdirector James B. Comey in December 2016.

Mr. Kramer may be able to disclose the identities of Mr. Steele’s Moscow sources.

Mr. Kramer has been deposed by attorneys for Russian entrepreneur Aleksej Gubarev, who is suing the news website BuzzFeed and Mr. Steele for libel over dossier allegations.

A Gubarev attorney told The Washington Times that they now know who gave the dossier to BuzzFeed but cannot publicly identify the person because of a court gag order.

The Daily Caller asked Mr. McCain in October if he supplied the dossier to BuzzFeed.

“I gave it to no one except for the director of the FBI. I don’t know why you’re digging this up now,” Mr. McCain replied.

The bias element

According to an interview in Mother Jones magazine, Mr. Steele said he supplied his memos — the ones accusing Mr. Trump of a Russia conspiracy — to the FBI in “early July” 2016. Mr. Comey has testified he began the counterintelligence investigation in “late July.”

The early memos (they eventually spanned from June to December) accuse the Trump team of a far-reaching conspiracy with the Kremlin to damage Mrs. Clinton.

Mr. Steele said the FBI asked for more of his memos in early August.

BuzzFeed at some point also obtained a copy and posted it in full on Jan. 10, 2017.

Concerning the FBI, Mr. Nunes wants more information on how the bureau used the document to investigate Trumppeople. He has been in a behind-the-scenes battle to gain access to FBI documents, only to be rebuffed.

House Speaker Paul D. Ryan, Wisconsin Republican, intervened by openly urging the FBI to cooperate. It then showed Mr. Nunes‘ staff a limited amount of information.

An impatient Mr. Nunes on Dec. 28 came close to accusing Justice and the bureau of a cover-up.

In a letter to Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, Mr. Nunes said the Department of Justice at first said dossier-related FBI interview summaries, known as 302s, “did not exist.”

Weeks later, under an Aug. 24 subpoena, DOJ suddenly located “numerous FD-302s pertaining to the Steele dossier, thereby rendering the initial response disingenuous at best,” the House intel committee chief wrote.

Based on the stonewalling, Mr. Nunes said the committee no longer can accept Justice’s position that it cannot turn over other official investigative forms, called 1032s. They document meetings between the FBI and confidential human sources.

“As a result of the numerous delays and discrepancies that have hampered the process of subpoena compliance, the committee no longer credits the representations made by DOJ and/or the FBI regarding these matters,” Mr. Nuneswrote.

He gave the Justice Department until Wednesday to comply.

“Unfortunately, DOJ/FBI’s intransigence with respect to the August 24 subpoenas is part of a broader pattern of behavior that can no longer be tolerated,” Mr. Nunes wrote. “At this point, it seems the DOJ and FBI need to be investigating themselves.”

A third area of committee inquiry is anti-Trump bias by investigators.

In December, the committee heard closed-door testimony from Deputy FBI Director Andrew McCabe. He was asked what the bureau confirmed among the dossier’s core collusion charges. He said just one: a trip to Moscow by Trumpcampaign volunteer Carter Page to deliver a public speech to a university.

Mr. McCabe headed the Clinton email investigation after his wife received nearly $700,000 in campaign donations from the Democratic Party and a PAC controlled by a close Clinton ally, Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe. Jill McCabe lost her state Senate race in 2015.

Justice Department Inspector General Michael E. Horowitz is investigating whether Mr. McCabe should have recused himself from the probe, which did not recommend criminal charges against Mrs. Clinton.

Mr. Nunes also wants testimony from FBI agent Peter Strzok. He headed the Trump inquiry until special counsel Robert Mueller fired him in July over his biased text messages to his FBI lover, Lisa Page. On his FBI-issued phone, Mr. Strzok texted about an unspecified “insurance policy” to keep Mr. Trump from winning the election. Mr. Nunes also demands that Ms. Page to be made available for interviews.

Also on the witness list in 2018 is senior Justice Department lawyer Bruce Ohr. He met with Mr. Steele during the election and with Fusion GPS afterwards. His wife worked as a Russia expert at Fusion, where she may have participated in the company’s anti-Trump campaign behind the scenes.

Source: https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2018/jan/1/devin-nunes-expands-russia-probe-use-Trump-dossier/

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House expands Russia probe to FBI, Justice use of unconfirmed dossier to snare Trump

Rowan Scarborough - The Washington Times — Mon, 01 Jan 2018 16:23:02 +0000